chrome plated steel - prone to rusting & peeling in bathrooms etc
chrome plated brass - long term durable
==Soldering== Chrome is not solderable. When soldering chrome plated pipe, scrape the chrome off where necessary.
==Cleaning== A cloth, cream cleaner & hot water remove dirt, a plastic scourer removes limescale. Avoid steel scourers, these are harder than the chrome. Avoid acids.
Chromium plating is not limited to those substrates: stainless steel, zinc alloy (mazak) castings, brass, copper and steel are all possible and there may be others I don't know about. Plastic is slightly different, as that is vacuum deposited, rather than electroplated. There is also hard chromium plating, which is applied as a wearing surface to things like plastic injection moulds.
The following applies to electroplating for decorative or corrosion protection:
The finish may be mirror finish, bright, dull, satin, pearl or black.
The durability does not depend upon the substrate, but upon the specifications of the plating.
Electro-plating for corrosion protection is the subject of BS EN 12540:
2000, which specifies four different service conditions:
1 - Indoors in warm, dry conditions
2 - Indoors where condensation may occur
3 - Service outdoors in temperate conditions
4 - Service outdoors in severe corrosive conditions. e.g. a marine environment.
So, although a service condition 1 plated article may well be prone to rusting or peeling in a bathroom, one plated to service condition 4 would not.
I used to have to specify chromium plating for things we made. Use as much or as little as you want, although see John's post for a more up to date British Standard number.
If I may quote John too, we will have a total rewrite so far:
NT
Chrome
This article is about chrome electroplating for decorative or corrosion protection. There is also hard chromium plating, which is applied as a wearing surface to things like plastic injection moulds.
Chrome plate comes in several finishes: mirror finish, bright, dull, satin, pearl or black.
Substrates used are: steel, brass, stainless steel, zinc alloy (mazak) castings, brass, copper and steel are all possible and there may be others I don't know about. Plastic is slightly different, as that is vacuum deposited, rather than electroplated.
=3D=3DDurability=3D=3D The durability does not depend upon the substrate, but upon the specifications of the plating.
Electro-plating for corrosion protection is the subject of BS EN
12540:
2000, which specifies four different service conditions:
1 - Indoors in warm, dry conditions
2 - Indoors where condensation may occur
3 - Service outdoors in temperate conditions
4 - Service outdoors in severe corrosive conditions. e.g. a marine environment.
So, although a service condition 1 plated article may well be prone to rusting or peeling in a bathroom, one plated to service condition 4 would not.
=3D=3DSoldering=3D=3D Chrome is not solderable. When soldering chrome plated pipe, scrape the chrome off where necessary.
=3D=3DCleaning=3D=3D A cloth, cream cleaner & hot water remove dirt, a plastic scourer removes limescale. Avoid steel scourers, these are harder than the chrome. Avoid acids.
=3D=3DStandards=3D=3D Electro-plating for corrosion protection is the subject of BS EN
12540:2000. Now there is a spectacularly dull document ;-). It was superseded by BS EN ISO 1456:2009 apparently.
Also it's unsuitable for pushfit connections - too hard for the gripping teeth to grip reliably, which can result in the fitting being pushed off under pressure sometime later.
Heat with a blow lamp and plunge into hydrochloric acid. That will strip it back to the base metal fairly rapidly. It is, obviously, a somewhat hazardous process, so wear suitable protective equipment while doing so and it is not a method I would include in the Wiki.
I always had 36% HCL to hand, as we used that in the flux we made for soldering stainless steel - half Baker's fluid No 1, one quarter 36% HCL and one quarter water. I never tested it at lower concentrations, although the flux would also strip chrome if you were not careful where it went.
It is about adhesion. Copper will plate well onto many things. Nickel will plate well onto copper. Chrome will plate well onto nickel. A nickel undercoat (or up to three depending upon specification) also gives a white metal under the chrome, which improves the looks.
I've had success grinding it off by gently rotating the pipe against a grinding wheel, or ideally something like a Tormek water-cooled wheel to get a better finish. Carfeul though that you only take the chrome of and don't start to grind down the copper as well.
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